Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Beijing Ducks, Stephon Marbury Part Ways

April 24th, 2017 at 11:41am CST by Luke Adams

After winning three Chinese Basketball Association championships in six years with the Beijing Ducks, former NBA All-Star guard Stephon Marbury is no longer a member of the team, per Qiushi Li of ESPN. The Ducks held a 2017/18 team option on Marbury as a player or an assistant coach, but the two sides couldn’t reach an agreement on his role, prompting the club to terminate the contract.

“We agreed that I would leave this season and the door is always open to coach,” Marbury tells Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated. “They had the option for me to play or coach, and they wanted me to coach. It’s understandable at my age, but my age doesn’t dictate my game. This gives me strong desire to work hard and try my best to come back to help a team win a [championship].”

Marbury, who turned 40 in February, explained in a letter to fans on Weibo that Beijing has not yet decided on a head coach for next season, making it difficult for him to accept an assistant coaching role with the club. Marbury also wants to continue playing for at least one more season, having previously announced his plans to retire as a player in 2018, and he expects to draw interest from other CBA teams.

A former fourth overall pick in the NBA, Marbury hasn’t played in the Association since he appeared in 23 games for the Celtics during the 2008/09 season. However, he became an international sensation in China, particularly after joining the Ducks in 2011. He was perennially among the CBA’s scoring leaders, and has won the league’s Foreign MVP award and the CBA Finals MVP award.

Although Marbury has spent most of the last decade in China, he recently expressed a desire to return to the NBA down the road as a coach.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 4/20/17

April 20th, 2017 at 9:24pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Here are the D-League transactions for the day:

The Raptors recalled forwards Bruno Caboclo and Pascal Siakam from Raptors 905, the team’s media relations department tweets. Neither player was active for Game 3 of Toronto’s playoff game against the Bucks on Thursday. Siakam had 15 points and 10 rebounds against the Maine Red Claws on Wednesday as Raptors 905 advanced to the D-League Finals. Caboclo scored 16 points in the 103-88 victory.
The Celtics recalled big man Jordan Mickey and point guard Demetrius Jackson from the Maine Red Claws, according to the team’s Twitter feed. Mickey had 13 points and nine rebounds against Raptors 905, while Jackson contributed 21 points and five assists in the season-ending loss.
The Thunder recalled forward Josh Huestis from the Oklahoma City Blue, the team announced in a press release. Huestis had a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds during Wednesday’s 102-114 season- ending loss to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers. He averaged 17.7 PPG and 6.7 RPG in six postseason games with the Blue.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls 4/19/17

April 19th, 2017 at 9:32pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Toronto’s D-League affiliate, the Raptors 905, beat the Maine Red Claws tonight to win the D-League’s Eastern Conference and advance to the finals. Pascal Siakam, who was assigned to the D-League earlier today (via the team’s Twitter feed), contributed to the win, scoring 15 points. The victory caps off a great day for the franchise, as its coach, Jerry Stackhouse, was named the D-League Coach of the Year this afternoon.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 4/18/17

April 18th, 2017 at 5:51pm CST by Austin Kent

Here are the D-League transactions for the day:

The Raptors assigned forward Bruno Caboclo to their D-League affiliate, the club’s media department tweets. The Raps and Bucks play Game 2 of their first-round series tonight at 6 PM CST, so it appears Caboclo won’t be with Toronto for that game.

And-Ones: Nurkic, Durant, R. Allen, W. Bynum

April 18th, 2017 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

The Trail Blazers and Warriors will play Game 2 of their series on Wednesday night, and both sides may be missing a key player. Jusuf Nurkic, who continues to recover from a fractured leg, announced today that he won’t play in Game 2 for the Blazers, per Joe Freeman of The Oregonian (Twitter link). Meanwhile, Kevin Durant, who recently returned from a knee injury, is now battling a left calf strain and was listed as questionable on the Warriors’ injury report today (Twitter link).

As we wait to see if Durant is able to give it a go for Golden State, let’s round up a few odds and ends from around the basketball world…

Appearing over the weekend on ESPN’s The Jump, Ray Allen was asked about why he hasn’t played in the NBA since the 2013/14 season, and explained that contract offers he received since then wouldn’t have given him a chance to have a real role (link via Adam London of NESN). “Most of the inquiries I have received were how ready am I to accept my role as a veteran and sit on the bench and mentor the young guys,” Allen said. “I’d love to do that, it comes naturally to me, but I do want to play.”
Veteran point guard Will Bynum has reached a deal to play for Luoyang in China this summer, according to 24/7 Basketball (Twitter link). Bynum, who has had multiple stints in China, played with the Pistons for several seasons in the NBA.
Canton Charge swingman John Holland – who has spent time with the Celtics and Cavaliers – is also headed to China, having agreed to a contract with the Beijing Eastern Ducks, Sam Amico of AmicoHoops.net confirms. International basketball journalist David Pick first reported (via Twitter) that Holland was finalizing a deal with the Chinese club.
The Maine Red Claws and Raptors 905 are currently battling for the right to advance to the D-League Finals, and each team saw a key contributor take home a major award within the past few days. 2016 Celtics second-rounder Abdel Nader was the D-League’s Rookie of the Year, while Edy Tavares, who spent most of the season with the Raptors‘ affiliate, was named the NBADL Defensive Player of the Year. Tavares is now on the Cavaliers‘ roster, having been signed on the last day of the regular season.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 4/17/17

April 17th, 2017 at 11:02pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Here are Monday’s D-League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:

The Raptors have recalled Bruno Caboclo and Pascal Siakam from the Raptors 905, according to the team’s Twitter feed. Siakam is one of the many 2016 first-round picks who saw action in the D-League this season, as Luke Adams of Hoops Rumors previously detailed.

Hornets Decline Christian Wood’s Team Option

April 17th, 2017 at 5:36pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Hornets have declined their team option on Christian Wood‘s contract for next season, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical reports (Twitter link). Bobby Marks of the Vertical (Twitter link) notes that Charlotte had five days after the season ended to make the call on Wood’s deal.

Wood signed a two-year deal with Charlotte last offseason and had the team picked up his option, he would have made slightly over $1.47MM next season.

The big man only played in 13 games with the Hornets, scoring just 35 points while grabbing 29 rebounds in 107 minutes of action this season. He also spent time playing for the Greensboro Swarm, Charlotte’s D-League affiliate.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 4/16/17

April 16th, 2017 at 6:15pm CST by Luke Adams

Here are Sunday’s D-League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:

The Celtics are in action in the first round of the NBA playoffs tonight, but Demetrius Jackson and Jordan Mickey aren’t with them, having been assigned to the Maine Red Claws, per the team (Twitter link). Jackson and Mickey are playing in Maine’s game against the Raptors 905 today in the D-League postseason.
The Rockets have assigned Chinanu Onuaku, Isaiah Taylor, and Kyle Wiltjer to the D-League, the team announced today (Twitter link). Like Boston, Houston has both its NBA team and its D-League affiliate playing postseason games today, so Onuaku, Taylor, and Wiltjer will suit up for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers rather than the Rockets.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 4/15/17

April 15th, 2017 at 10:29pm CST by Arthur Hill

Here are Saturday’s assignments/recalls from around the league:

The Thunder assigned forward Josh Huestis to their Oklahoma City Blue affiliate, the team announced in a press release. Huestis has participated in four D-League playoff games with OKC, averaging 19.0 points and 5.5 rebounds per night, while shooting 56% from the floor.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 4/14/17

April 14th, 2017 at 8:44pm CST by Milo Taibi

Here are Friday’s assignments/recalls from around the league…

The Raptors assigned Bruno Caboclo and Pascal Siakam to Raptors 905, the team announced via Twitter (link). Caboclo and Siakam should pick up steady minutes for Raptors 905, as they take on the Maine Red Claws in the D-League Eastern Conference finals.
The Rockets recalled Chinanu Onuaku, Isaiah Taylor, and Kyle Wiltjer from the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, the team announced via Twitter (link). All three players received 35+ minutes in Rio Grande’s Game 1 loss to the Blue on Thursday.
The Thunder recalled Josh Huestis from Oklahoma City Blue, the team announced in a press release. Huestis scored 11 points over 29 minutes with the Blue in the D-League playoffs last night.